Christian Central Academy - Monday
Today we went to a small village about half an hour from the Score Complex. At this village we were supposed to go to the village school to minister to the children during their school hours. Instead God had a different plan. We met in a central village gathering place no bigger than a park shelter where we started our mission. Through being here, not only were we able to minister to the children but also to the local adults and teenagers. It was different to see these children so excited to see us even before we left the bus, so much that our local missionary needed to do a little crowd control before we exited the bus. At first my initial reaction was to stand back and watch because I was a bit nervous and I could tell so were many of my classmates. But soon we started our program and from there on out it was easy. I, being one of our class photographers, got a good view from my spot where I was snapping pictures of all the people there. They all watched us very carefully as my classmates did our drama. When we were finished the missionary asked the crowd if there was anything they would like to say about the drama and one young man, no older than 25, raised his hand and spoke. Later I asked our missionary what he had said and he told me something like this: “the man says that he understood the drama and he realizes that through all the sin we have, no matter what we did, Jesus will always take away our burdens and will set us free just as it says in the Bible, to cast all of our cares upon him and he will carry you.” It was a big encouragement to know that even though we couldn’t literally speak to them we spoke to them, God spoke to them through us and they understood. We also got the chance just to socialize and play with the kids (and the adults). These kids love to be attended to and appreciated even our smallest gifts, which were only a page ripped out of a coloring book and a few crayons, as well as the popular balloon “sombrero”. Although there was a language barrier it didn’t stop us from meeting these children and allowing them to bless our lives. I talked with several children as well as some young people my age, just small talk in Spanish like how old they were or what they like to do likewise they had their questions as well. It was so interesting to hear them talk and ask about the United States and about my family. One boy, about my age, had approached me in his broken English to ask for his picture to be taken, from here started a long conversation about his life and about mine. I wasn’t able to share with him personally about Christ but I gave a heaven tract that he gladly accepted and I know that he heard about Christ during the program. Overall, our first day in the Dominican Republic was amazing. I love the people and the country already and I know this week will be great! Keep us in prayer.
- Russell Blueye
Well where do we begin? This afternoon we went to another village about forty minutes out from the SCORE Complex, where we ministered to local group of Dominicans. Scared and anxious after our first visit to a village, we both sat together on the bus wondering about what this next visit would be like. After a very emotional morning visit, neither of us thought that we could take much more of seeing such depraved, poverty stricken people. As we were pulling off the main road and heading towards the village, every person we waved at returned the favor. It is amazing to see just how friendly these people are. When we neared the village, several kids, as well as parents came out of their houses- nothing more than glorified brick huts. But none of them were upset or sad, and many of the kids ran alongside the bus, hoping that we would even just give them a glare or notice that they were there. Once the bus stopped, kids surrounded us, obsessed with many of us waving at them or taking their pictures. All that they wanted was some attention, some appreciation from someone. Then after this, we got off the bus and went into a small, barbed wired, community center, with nothing more than a concrete floor, four walls, and a few benches and chairs on which the people of the village sat on. I (Drew) started the message by giving my testimony, of which it was amazing to look around and see the attentiveness of the people, of whom I didn’t speak the same language, nor look anything like. Then I (Jenny) was in the ’sin skit’ that taught the kids about the scary fact that once you sin once, you get stuck in it, and how it influences the people around you. I honestly was wondering whether they were even paying attention, or understanding the point of the skit, however when Manny, a Dominican Pastor and our translator, asked one of the children what he learned from the skit, he nailed the message right on. I was glad that we were able to convey to the children the point that once you make yourself vulnerable to sin, it continues to crouch at your doorstep ready to consume you. Then we did our major skit, had a few testimonies, and then those of us in chorus sang ‘O Lord How Majestic’ to the people. Then the real fun began. We broke out the coloring books and crayons, and both of us sat down on the floor and began to color with the kids. They were so happy, just having a crayon and a piece of paper. How much we take for granted. It was just, well indescribable, when a young Dominican girl came up to me (Drew), holding a paper she colored, and said ‘para ti’, which means ‘for you’. Even with the one thing that we had given her, she gave it to me, and all I could do was hold back tears, mutter the words ‘gracias. Para ti’, hand her my colored paper, and then watch her run off with the biggest smile I’ve ever seen, and a smile I’ll never forget. Another girl came up to me (Jenny) later when we were outside and pointed to my necklace, a heart with a cross in it, asking me about Jesus. It was really touching to me that with all the excitement and games going on around us she wanted to talk to me about God. It was difficult at first to explain to her what I wanted to say because of the language barrier, but eventually I was able to explain that I loved Jesus because he loved me before I even knew Him and that He loved her too. All I can do is hope that God gave me the right words to say to this curious girl, and that what I said was enough to explain God’s indescribable love. We brought a soccer ball, and many of the guys went and kicked the ball around with the boys (which ended up being ‘keep away from the white kids’), while the girls played patty-cake game and danced with the girls. Eventually, the guys had ‘horse’ races, in which each of us got a Dominican boy on our back and ran around. Then probably the lowest point of the day- saying goodbye. They all hugged us and wanted us to stay. Both of us would’ve stayed with them in a heartbeat. It was such a touching experience and there’s still more to come. But we’ve realized that these people are people. They need love, and they need Jesus. Despite having nothing, they are happy, which totally blows our minds away. How can we be sad for these people when they are so happy, more happy than us? Truly nothing we can write or say will really sum up exactly the emotions behind this day. God has shown us a lot, and shown us that we have so much to be thankful for, and that people are people, regardless of language or color, and are in need of Jesus. Continue to pray for us, for this is only the end of Day 1! We are extremely excited for the rest of the week, and look forward to the experiences we will share with the rest of our classmates in this wonderful country, and to what else God will show us.
Peace and Love— Jenny Bochieco and Drew Shannon
